It's a new day in animation! African
American animators, writers, producers, voice over talents and fans
are making sure that the black experience is brought to light--cartoon
style.

As a huge fan of cartoons, I've put
together this site. I'm currently a second year English major and a
single guy who still likes watching animation. I'm not claiming to be
any kind of authority. If I like what I see, I'll add it to the site
if I don't, you'll probably never see it here. I invite anyone to submit
info about animators, or cartoons to blackcartoonz@yahoo.com

Back in the days of the Jackson 5 and Fat Albert,
seeing just one black character in a cartoon was unheard of. Nowadays,
shows like the Proud Family, Static Shock and Little Bill are changing
the game and outside of television, the web-explosion is creating its
own stars.

The Web: The New Frontier

The cool thing about
web animation is that we get to see creative stuff that we'd never get
to see anywhere else. There's a bunch of talented and independent artists
making it happen online! It's
what I consider the 'new frontier.' The downside about web animation
is that early on a bunch of sick and twisted dudes with too much time
on their hands, and just enough animation skills, bombarded the web
with raunchy, tasteless animation. But I guess that's the way the cookie
crumbled.

Nonetheless, I've scoured the internet
for stuff that cartoon-enthusiasts can enjoy and these are the cool sites
that I've discovered:

The Love brothers, Jeremy,
Maurice and Robert have got mad illustration skillz. Its amazing that
all of these brothers are equally as talented in the arts. From Venus
Kincaid, to The Adventures of Credence Walker. You WILL 'love' the
Love Brothers' stuff. They do comic books and animation.

Also hailing from the Bay Area
is the duo known as "Dreadfully Slick," Dread Williams and
Ice Berg Slick. Their Jamurai series follows the adventures of a young
dude schooled in the martial arts. The little dude is too cool with
his dreadlocks flying as he rips his opponents new ones. This series
reminds me of Ninjai, one of the sickest (I mean that in a good way)
web series' online.

The Gibbs sisters (aka Shawnee
Gibbs and Shawnelle Gibbs) also keep animation in the family. Their
animated web series Adopted By Aliens has something for all ages. It
has that Saturday morning cartoon feel that toonheadz like me like to
eat cereal to. The
twins are from my birthplace, the Bay Area--they're also a couple of
cuties.

Urban entertainment isn't for
the kiddies. It's actually the home of some pretty raunchy animation.
Although it has had some standout hits like 'Sistas 'N The City' and
Undercover Brother, some of the work is a little tasteless. Just be
selective about what links you choose to click on--and when. Cuz it's
adult subject matter, no doubt about it.

Black Themed animations on Television

The Proud Family (Disney)

The Proud Family is one of the
funniest shows on television. Just listening to the show, you recognize
the voices of many talented black actors that we have come to know and
love over the years. This show is well-written and enjoyable for all
ages.

Fillmore (ABC)

This boy is serious about representing for his
school's safety patrol. He's smart, tough and is able to make those
white no-eyed glasses look cool. Plus he's got his OWN show on ABC.
Now that gets major props!

Hey Monie (BET)

Hey Monie is a relatively funny
show. The animation style reminds me of Dr. Katz (the comedy central
show of the 90s). I'm still trying to figure out if Monie is a 'likeable'
character. She's kind of humdrum and there isn't a whole lot of excitement,
but what do I know about being a 'working woman?' Props to BET for trying
to diversify its programming! Keep it up.

Static Shock (WB)

Virgil Hawkins is the first
black teen superhero ever! He's gifted with electromagnetic powers that
allow him to save the world. This show is also well-wriiten and appeals
to older kids who can identify with teen issues.

Fatherhood (Nick at Nite)

This show is based on Bill Cosby's book of
the same name.The one thing I can't get into is the upper-middle class
issues that the show tackles. I'm a huge fan of the Cosby show, and
this show feels like a rip-off of it. I'm sure they'll get new (updated)
storylines. The character design is pretty cool.

Little Bill

This one's for the little tikes. Little Bill
is a great, jazzy edition to Nick Jr's diverse line-up. Along with
Dora The Explora, Little Bill is helping to make pre-schoolers appreciate
the differences in all of us.

African American characters
in cartoons

Here some of the most popular African
American cartoon characters ever. I'm still trying to generate a list,
I'm having a hard time representing the 1970s and 80s--maybe because
there weren't many. I notice that most of the black characters currently
in animation are from Nickelodeon shows. They do a great job with diversity.
Cartoon Network should take note.